Testimonials

Uniquely K (Kotlowski)

Fooled Again!....Story of 'another' online gemstone purchase

Well,
the owner of All That Glitters
couldn't help but wonder and hope that a Neon Orange Zircon
as seen in
a photo online, was indeed as neony orange as the photo
showed.
After all, the description by the company selling it stated
"Vibrant
Orangey Pink", so even if the photo was off slightly, this
stone
sounded like it would glow!

If the Zircon was true to the photo and
description, it would be a real find, as this color would be
very
unique. Like all gemstones, there are sometimes those
that are
very rare and special in size, color and clarity - this is
All That
Glitters' forte. This is also why trade magazines,
journals,
other magazines, newspapers and even books on gemstones have
sought out
gemstones from All That Glitters:
< Recent or to be
Published
ATG Gemstones >

We were skeptical because when ones sees an overseas company
(or any
company for that matter), whose
garnets, zircons, tourmaline, quartz and many other
gemstones, have
unusual colors that the owner of All That Glitters had never
seen in
over 30 years in the gemstone business, one has to asssume
that the
colors have been enhanced. The Zircon was purchased and
unfortunately,
as has always been the case in the past when something
similar had been
seen online, it was a disappointment. The color was
not neon, it
was not vibrant, it was not Orange really at all. It
was a more
saturated color and at best, could be described as a smoky
peach.
Under certain lights, it is quite sparkly and more of a
color expected
of a Zircon. We can purchase similar rough, and by the
time we
finish faceting it, our cost and price to the public would
be less than
what we paid for this piece - but still not bad for someone
in the
retail market who wanted a Zircon of this color.
However, this is
the not color described or in the photo.

Below, are photos of the Zircon discussed above:

On the left is the
photo
appearing online; on the right is the actually
gemstone that we
photographed. Described as a Vibrant Orangey
Pink, we would
describe it as a smoky peach. It is a
difficult color to
describe, but it is certainly not a Vibrant Orangy
Pink as described
or as photographed!

Before this page went active online, we decided to purchase
a purple
Tourmaline. It was guaranteed to be an accurate photo,
and the
color was verifed as being purple. Below, is the photo
as it
appears online, and on the right hand side is the gemstone
that was
received - a far cry from the photo or even the purple that
they had
said it was when an email was sent prior to purchase:

We personally realize that everyones monitor is different,
and
everyones color perception differs. How businesses can
believe
that they can modify a photo so dramatically, as to create a
gemstone
that doesn't exist, and expect the customer to be happy, is
beyond our
comprehension. On our monitor in our office, the
gemstone photos
that appear on our website are quiet accurate.
However, everyones
monitor is different and the subtleties do affect the colors
that one
sees. One of our West Coast collectors/investors, who
purchased
many of our important gemstones, actually color corrected
this monitor
by looking at the gemstones he purchased from us, and
modified the
monitor to display color that was similar to his
purchases. In
this way, he was insuring a closer approximation of the
color on the
monitor to the gemstones that he would be
receiving/purchasing.

We rarely modify our photographs as we take them, but
sometimes they
have to be tweeked because the camera does not see the color
that the
eye is seeing. This is not to deceive, but to color
correct and
to insure that the gemstone more closely resembles what our
customers
will receive. Of course, if the gemstone that you
receive from us
is not to your liking in any away, we do have our 7 Day 80%
Customer
Satisfacton Guarantee, as well as a LifeTime Guarantee:
100% Satisfaction GuaranteeLifetime Guarantee

For those wishing to modify gemstone color to their advantage but to the detriment of customers,
and thus deceiving a customer, it is quite easy to do, and this
is exactly what
has happened with the recent purchase online as
described above.
We personally don't understand why any legitimate
business would want
to do this as the customer will see the difference between the online photo and the gemstone received!

The example below, is a photograph of a nice Yellow
Beryl, from Brasil,
faceted by a cutter in Los Angeles many years ago (and
is currently
available for purchase!). It is then followed by
photo
enhancement.

If only beryl truly
came in these wonderful
vibrant colors!!!!

The owner of All That Glitters, Mr. Brown, was contacted
by an individual who has a blog related to gemstones, and asked
whether he would be interested in writing an article for the blog.
The topic eventually decided on:
8
Tips on Purchasing Fine Gemstones Online
This article is related to the topic of Photo Enhancement and should also be read by interested consumers.

Again, the bottom line as has been mentioned in previous
Monthly News
as well as on our Learn More page - Know your dealer.
Important
factors include:

Time in Business

Professionalism

Education/Experience/Background

Reviews/Feedback from other Customers

Referrals

Return Policy

Common Sense based on just some of the bullets above!

We hope that this has been an education for our customers,
as it is
certainly one for us. We are always learning, seeking
gemstones
from new finds, and willing to make a purchase to learn the
truth about
something - that is why we also have an article on Fading
Orangy Topaz
that will appear in a future edition of Gems & Gemology
Magazine
published by the GIA!